The Past is the Past
by girltogirl
Summary: Spencer apologizes to Paige, with a side of Paily. Post 3x12. One shot. Reviews are appreciated.


She could still feel the dried tears on her cheeks, and the slight crust around the edge of her nose. Her eyes felt heavy with exhaustion. She didn't want to talk to the police officers who were questioning her anymore; she just wanted to be in the comforting warmth of her girlfriend's arms.

The thought of her made Paige turn around to see the girl in question hug her blonde friend over the tape that divided them. Out of the corner of her eye, she couldn't help noticing that one of Emily's other friends was staring at her, with slightly narrowed eyes, from the other side of the tape. Determined, Paige stared back, unflinching, even though she shivered and crossed her arms over her chest; her light, grey sweater was _not _shielding her from the cold weather. Or, maybe it was the lingering gaze of the tall brunette that made her uncomfortable.

Hesitating, Paige shot Spencer an uncertain smile; just a tiny quirk of the lips. Spencer's gaze hovered over her, her mouth parted open slightly. A tiny twitch at the corner of her mouth softened her features for a moment, but it was gone before the other girl could be sure. But she couldn't help noticing the tiny flicker of guilt that flashed in her eyes for a mere second.

Her thoughts were interrupted when another loud cry escaped Hanna's mouth. Paige's heart clenched with sympathy. It pained Paige to hear Hanna hurting so much. Although she wasn't close friends with the blonde, she knew Hanna was crazy about Caleb.

And Paige knew what it felt like when someone you loved was slipping through your fingers, and there was nothing you could do about it.

The slamming of the ambulance doors woke Paige from her thoughts, and she watched as the ambulance drove quickly towards the Rosewood Hospital, and Hanna's screams only grew louder. The other girl wasn't sure why, but she slowly trudged her way toward where her girlfriend and the others were, and offered Hanna a sympathetic smile when she reached them.

To her surprise, Hanna engulfed the shorter girl in a hug. Hesitantly, she snaked her arms around the girl, and patted her awkwardly.

"It'll be okay, Hanna," was the only thing Paige could think to whisper.

Hanna hesitated as she stepped back. She quickly wiped her eyes and sniffled.

"Should we...should we go to the hospital, now?" Emily asked, gently.

"Yeah," the blonde muttered. Aria kept a firm grip on her as they made their way to the car.

"I should go," Paige said, softly, looking at her girlfriend. She pecked the girl on a cheek as a good-bye.

Emily frowned. "Are you sure you don't want to come with us?"

Paige hesitated and glanced at Spencer, who kept shifting on her feet, looking uncomfortable. "I don't think I'd be very welcome." Her tone was soft spoken.

Emily huffed, and said, pointedly, with a cool peek in the direction of the taller brunette. "If they don't-"

"Em, it's okay." Paige pressed her lips to Emily's this time, and turned to leave, but Spencer called her back. Paige paused for a second, and Spencer, in a rush, said:

"You should come with us. I- Hanna needs all the friends she could get, right now."

Paige raised her eyebrows slightly, in surprise, but didn't hesitate to follow Spencer and Emily to their car.

...

They arrived at the hospital an hour later. The building was busier than usual; doctors and nurses kept hustling by, and almost all of the chairs that were offered to be sat on by people there for their loved ones were taken. So it was slightly surprising when Paige, Emily, and Spencer spotted Hanna and Aria right away. The tiny girl's hands were clutching the blonde's arm, and the blonde in question had her head resting on her shoulder.

"Any news?" Spencer demanded as the trio made their way over to the two. They all managed to find seats close to each other.

Hanna didn't answer; her eyes stared into space, looking a little dazed and tears were streaking down her face. Her bottom lip was trembling, and her hands were shaking slightly.

Aria noticed, and answered for her. "Not yet," she said, sounding regretful. She crouched next to Hanna, tears in her own eyes, and tried whispering words of comfort, such as "He'll be fine," and "It's going to be okay; I promise," to the broken blonde.

Paige shivered, suddenly remember what Nate...or, whatever-his-name-was, said to her as he shoved her against the wall in the closet.

"_It'll be okay."_

"_I'm not going to hurt you. I'm just going to stab your girlfriend a thousand times, until she bleeds to death."_

"_You'll be fine...after a few years of therapy."_

Suddenly feeling as though she couldn't breathe, Paige abruptly stood up. She still hadn't had time to process what had happened, but the memories of the night were slowly creeping up on her, waiting to strike. She needed to be alone for a few minutes, to gather her thoughts and let her frustrations and tears out. As she stood up, Emily and Spencer both glanced at her.

"Paige?" Emily said, looking worried.

"I...I need some air. I'll be back in a few minutes, Em," Paige said, sounding apologetic. For once, she was grateful that Emily didn't follow her; the girl knew she needed her space.

When she was outside, she sat on a lone bench. She began to gather her thoughts, while trying to block out what the bastard had hissed in her ear at the same time. She shivered, and not just from the cold, as she remembered the sting of his words.

_"I'll kill her, bitch."_

_"You'll get to watch your precious Emily die."_

_"Everyone will blame you. They won't even give me a second_ glance."

Paige's breathing began to quicken, and her heart sped up. She knew a panic attack was coming on as spots began to form in her eyes.

_She didn't know which was worse; the feeling of him inside of her, holding her shaking body steady as he sat on top of her, completely naked, or the thought of watching the love of her life die in front of her, bleeding a thousand deaths in her mind._

"Paige?"

Without noticing the tears falling down her face, she jumped slightly, and turned to see Spencer staring at her, both curiously and a bit nervously.

"Oh, Spencer. You scared me," Paige breathed, feeling shaken.

"Sorry," Spencer apologized. She motioned to the bench Paige was sitting on. "Mind if I join you?"

The other girl blinked, slightly surprised. "S-sure." It was understandable that she was tentative, considering the last talk the two of them shared involved threats and ridiculous assumptions. The bench weighed down a bit heavy as a presence of another body sat on it. Spencer looked at Paige; the same curious, open-minded look she'd give at the scene of the crime. Paige opened her mouth, about to ask her why she was sitting there with her, when Spencer spoke first.

"Emily was worried."

Paige nodded, but didn't say anything, just stared straight ahead.

"Well...I was, too, actually. I mean, what happened at the cabin with Nate-"

"I don't want to talk about it," Paige spoke sharply, cutting her off.

"Okay," the taller girl murmured softly. They were silent for a few minutes, watching people walk by. Spencer's next words surprised Paige. They were rushed and blunt, but meaningful all the same.

"I'm sorry."

Two simple little words that lifted Paige's heart a thousand times over. She hesitated, unsure if she should say anything, but then, Spencer continued, starting to rant.

"I know I don't say that a lot. But, I definitely owe you an apology, Paige. I accused you of something I shouldn't have-"

"Spencer," Paige said, trying to intervene.

"-and know that it's hard for me to admit I'm wrong sometimes, and I make mistakes, and I-"

"Spencer." A tiny quirk with the mouth gave away Paige's attempt at hiding her smile.

"-I admit it, okay? I feel guilty for trying to convince Emily that you're anything other than a decent person and girlfriend, and, I'm-"

"_Spencer!"_

"-sorry," the taller girl finished lamely.

"Look, I forgive you, okay? But, please; just calm down. You're actually scaring me."

Spencer made a face. Then she softened. "I still feel bad-"

"Like I said at the store the other day, we can just start fresh."

Spencer let out a small breath. "But that was before we went through your bag."

Paige shrugged. "The past is the past."

"Okay. So, we're good?"

Paige knew she should still feel at least a little resentment for being accused of threatening and harming her girlfriend and her friends, but the girl thought that maybe if there was someone always stalking her and sending her threatening messages, she'd be paranoid and jump to conclusions, too. Also, she was just to tired and relieved to be angry. She gave the tall brunette a small smile.

"We're good."

They grinned awkwardly at each other, when Emily came racing out.

"Hey, are you okay?" she asked Paige. Then she saw Spencer, and frowned. "What're you doing here?"

The taller liar pretended to glare at Paige. "Don't say a word." Paige pretended to zip her lips, and Spencer stood up. "I'm going to check on Hanna and Aria. How are they?"

"Asleep," Emily replied, looking relieved that Hanna seemed to finally get some rest.

Paige smiled. Spencer nodded, and gave Emily a hug. "I'm glad you're okay."

Emily smiled, and settled on the bench next to Paige, who basked in her warmth. Emily draped her arm around the other girl, and they sat there, snuggling contently.

"So how are you, really?" Emily whispered.

Paige thought it funny the way she could so easily open up to Emily; but then, she trusted the girl with her life. "I'm still in shock, I guess," she laughed dryly.

"Oh, baby," Emily said, sadly.

"The more important question is, how are _you _doing?"

"I..." Emily trailed off as tears began spilling from her eyes down her face. "Not good," she sniffled.

Paige gathered the now-sobbing girl in her arms. "Em, it'll be okay. We'll get through this."

"We?"

"We."

-End-


End file.
